But I love the writing here ….
I think we all know what the stigma here is: To be seen driving a minivan is to admit to a kind of shameful domesticity, an existence of postsexual nullity and a state of parental slavery, ever orbiting from school, to grocery store, to ballet lessons, to games, like some suburban Flying Dutchman.
However, as the father of twin 3-year-olds, I have never suffered from minivan embarrassment. After all, nothing says “stud” quite like a minivan. Through the lens of evolutionary biology, females look at men driving minivans as far more likely to continue their genetic coding, to invest in their offspring, than some dork in a Lamborghini. Yes, indeed, the lure of a minivan is primal. WSJ.com
I didn’t (and still really don’t), nor do I have kids currently, but my mom mentioned something the other day that I hadn’t thought of.
Minivans are the safest vehicle, especially if you have multiple kids, and especially for moms (which my wife will eventually be). The reason is those dang sliding doors and the way the seats are laid out. With an SUV, when you have the door open, you leave a large area unseen – someone could sneak up on you while you’re strapping the kids in and you wouldn’t see them, if they came from the direction of the door.
Also, the way the seats are, you can close all the doors and still move around to the various seats – so if you have 3 kiddos, you can get them all *in* the vehicle, close the doors, lock’em down, and then bother with buckling everyone in. Again, just a tad safer than going to all the different openings.
As stated, I don’t have any kids, so I don’t know if this holds true, but it definitely gave me something to think about. Maybe it’s just being too paranoid…
I didn’t (and still really don’t), nor do I have kids currently, but my mom mentioned something the other day that I hadn’t thought of.
Minivans are the safest vehicle, especially if you have multiple kids, and especially for moms (which my wife will eventually be). The reason is those dang sliding doors and the way the seats are laid out. With an SUV, when you have the door open, you leave a large area unseen – someone could sneak up on you while you’re strapping the kids in and you wouldn’t see them, if they came from the direction of the door.
Also, the way the seats are, you can close all the doors and still move around to the various seats – so if you have 3 kiddos, you can get them all *in* the vehicle, close the doors, lock’em down, and then bother with buckling everyone in. Again, just a tad safer than going to all the different openings.
As stated, I don’t have any kids, so I don’t know if this holds true, but it definitely gave me something to think about. Maybe it’s just being too paranoid…
I didn’t (and still really don’t), nor do I have kids currently, but my mom mentioned something the other day that I hadn’t thought of.
Minivans are the safest vehicle, especially if you have multiple kids, and especially for moms (which my wife will eventually be). The reason is those dang sliding doors and the way the seats are laid out. With an SUV, when you have the door open, you leave a large area unseen – someone could sneak up on you while you’re strapping the kids in and you wouldn’t see them, if they came from the direction of the door.
Also, the way the seats are, you can close all the doors and still move around to the various seats – so if you have 3 kiddos, you can get them all *in* the vehicle, close the doors, lock’em down, and then bother with buckling everyone in. Again, just a tad safer than going to all the different openings.
As stated, I don’t have any kids, so I don’t know if this holds true, but it definitely gave me something to think about. Maybe it’s just being too paranoid…
Ricky, I don’t think it is being too paranoid, it is being practical. Children can outnumber a tired parent very quickly and it is nice to have corners covered with children. I only have 4 door car right now, but when I put son in the car, I always use the electric locks on it. Because it only takes a second.
I think the mini van has improved over the oval looking things in the 80’s. They aren’t as ugly as they used to be in my opinion.